The Teachers: A Year Inside America's Most Vulnerable, Important Profession

Alexandra Robbins

Mar 2023 · Sold by Penguin

About this ebook

***A National Bestseller***

A riveting, must-read, year-in-the-life account of three teachers, combined with reporting that reveals what’s really going on behind school doors, by New York Times bestselling author and education expert Alexandra Robbins.
 
Alexandra Robbins goes behind the scenes to tell the true, sometimes shocking, always inspirational stories of three teachers as they navigate a year in the classroom. She follows Penny, a southern middle school math teacher who grappled with a toxic staff clique at the big school in a small town; Miguel, a special ed teacher in the western United States who fought for his students both as an educator and as an activist; and Rebecca, an East Coast elementary school teacher who struggled to schedule and define a life outside of school. Robbins also interviewed hundreds of other teachers nationwide who share their secrets, dramas, and joys.
 
Interspersed among the teachers’ stories—a seeming scandal, a fourth-grade whodunit, and teacher confessions—are hard-hitting essays featuring cutting-edge reporting on the biggest issues facing teachers today, such as school violence; outrageous parent behavior; inadequate support, staffing, and resources coupled with unrealistic mounting demands; the “myth” of teacher burnout; the COVID-19 pandemic; and ways all of us can help the professionals who are central both to the lives of our children and the heart of our communities.

Ratings and reviews

The Teachers brilliantly shows what it's like to be a teacher today in way that makes you want to keep turning the pages to find out what happens to the teachers. The book shows the challenges that teachers face and also the happiest, most moving parts of the job. I highly recommend this book to everyone. It's a story you will not forget about.

Devoured this book in a day because I was so into the main teachers' stories and had to find out what happened to them. The Teachers taught me more than I expected it to. A must read.

Excellent story: I was drawn into the story from the start, and got caught up in Penny, Miguel, and Rebecca's situations. Bonus points for the mystery.

About the author

Alexandra Robbins, the author of five New York Times bestselling books and a Goodreads Best Nonfiction Book of the Year, is an award-winning investigative reporter who has been honored for “Distinguished Service to Public Education.” She has written for several publications, including The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and The Atlantic, and has appeared on hundreds of television shows, including 60 Minutes, Today, CBS Mornings, The Oprah Winfrey Show, The View, and The Colbert Report.